The American Economic Association is "strongly discouraging" holding employment interviews in regular hotel rooms during its upcoming annual meeting—part of an effort to "improve the economics professional climate."

In a Sept. 3 announcement to members, AEA said it is acceptable to do job interviews in hotel suites, and is reserving suites for employers to use for this purpose at the Jan. 3-5 meeting in San Diego. The group is asking general meeting attendees to reserve a regular hotel room and affirm that it will not be used for interviews, and has asked them to acknowledge and accept the AEA Code of Professional Conduct and the AEA Policy on Harassment and Discrimination.

The association found in a survey conducted last year, with results released this past March, that nearly half of female economists believe they have been discriminated against on the basis of sex in the last 10 years. The group vowed to address the problem.

The Wall Street Journal reports that AEA's annual meeting "is equal parts academic conference and massive job fair," with attendance around 13,000 people.